Enter The Beast
by FutanariIsFail
Summary: A creature of unspeakable power is to be unleashed from its prison upon the Candy Kingdom, and the Flame Kingdom, who anticipate war with the Reaper order, plan to use Finn as their pawn, and it's up to Rufus to stop Finn from falling into the wrong hands.


It was a beautiful day in the Land of Ooo. The sky was a nice, bright shade of blue, there were no clouds whatsoever in the sky, the birds were chirping, the flowers gave off their usual pleasant smells, and I was out having a picnic with my brothers Finn and Jake. They sat there, munching on sandwiches and such, while I had my nose buried in a tome of Reaper lore and code and such. Finn then said to me, "Hey bro, look! There's a double rainbow!" I then said to him, "Quiet, Finn. I'm trying to read. I've got big shoes to fill for the Reapers." Jake then said to me, "Ah, lighten up, Rufus. Put that book down and have some cake." I then laid the book on my lap and thought over the idea of eating this cake. After considering, I then said, "Oh, why not?"

Jake then handed me the cake, which was in a small metal tin decorated with a lighthouse on a lake. Inside, the chocolate fudge cake was in plastic wrap, and right next to it was a folded note with an odd aroma. I picked up the note and smelled it. I thought to myself, that's quite odd for a random piece of paper to smell like that. Finn then said, "A note?" I unfolded it. It was blank. A misplaced, smelly piece of parchment, with nothing written on it, just to distract me from this delicious confection. Jake then found it in himself to state, "Wait... I know that smell." As he said this, a large, regal bird flew into the scene, and it was there and then I recognized that creature. That creature was The Morrow, Princess Bubblegum's bird, standing erect and firm, staring me cold in the eye. I was somewhat confused by this sudden appearance, but nonetheless contributed my vision to its presence. It held one wing high into the air, and then moved that wing back down to neutral position. It then started moving it back and forth, as if it were pointing to its backside. Jake then said, "I think it's signalling for us to get on its back." We mounted The Morrow, and it flew us to The Candy Kingdom.

We arrived to Princess Bubblegum's castle, in one piece and somewhat intrigued, without a doubt aware that something important was brewing. After dismounting The Morrow, we stepped into the castle, casually, but cautiously marching forward to the princess's quarters, and looked around for any sign of trouble. We found none. We had made it to the conference room, and there and then, Princess Bubblegum opened the door, looking somewhat anxious and rather unnerved, as if something was bothering her. She said to me, calmly and forlornly, "Greetings, Rufus. Please, come in alone. These are matters between the kingdom and you, and... someone else." This confused me, but I was willing to confront this matter alone and step into her quarters to discuss whatever was going on. She sat down, then commanding me to seat myself, and said to me, "Rufus, the Reapers have been meaning to reach me, but as you know, the only method they have of communication is you. Let the energy flow, Rufus. I need to hear their cries." I then focused the energy throughout my body, allowing that spiritual energy to reside within me, and there and then I was the Reapers' puppet, allowing everything they think, do, and say to be transferred to my own movements and speech. The spirits said, through my mouth, "Princess Bubblegum of the Candy Kingdom, a grave danger is to be bestowed upon your kingdom in ten years." The room filled with silence for a good fifteen to twenty seconds, rising tensions and creating suspense. They continued, "A beast is contained within the Reaper Realm, an afterlife for a certain breed of Reapers. It stands three stories high, has a hard outer shell on its abdomen, a plethora of stinging tentacles, pincers on its face, unmercifully bright eyes that could blind a man, and a snakelike lower body that it slithers on, lined with piercing sharp spikes." Princess Bubblegum then lowered her jaw in dumbfoundment and coldly stared at me as the Reapers spoke, replying, "Go on." The Reapers continued, "This beast exists for little purpose other than to wreak havoc, which is why we keep it in such a contained environment. However, not even our powers can stop it from escaping once every thousand years. It is within Archimedes the Atoner that we trust to protect your kingdom this time around." Princess Bubblegum, surprised, replied, "Wait, what do you mean 'protect my kingdom?'" The Reapers continued, "You see, fair lady, the Beast's point of ascension just so happens to be located within your kingdom. When it rises a decade from now, it will appear not far from this very castle. If Archimedes is to prevent the beast from causing total destruction, there will be minimal damage to this... vibrant place. You have our support."

Princess Bubblegum then banged her fist against the table and rose herself out of her chair. "No!" she exclaimed. She continued, quietly, but annoyed, "I will not have your monstrosity do its bidding upon my kingdom, my citizens, and my creations! This kingdom is a lifetime's worth of hard work and research, and I'm not going to lose years of work all because you've got yourself an infestation to take care of." The Reapers then yelled, "Silence!" This had Bubblegum fall back into her seat into submission, keeping her mouth shut so as to avoid further fury. "The boy will tame the beast, the beast will be contained for another thousand years. I think we make ourselves clear." Priness Bubblegum then looked down, and up again, thinking over the situation. Agreeing, she replied, "I understand, Reapers. If it is what must be done, so be it." We then shook hands, and another sassafrassin' prophecy was to be brought about.

We returned to the treehouse as usual, and the rest of the evening went on as it normally did. It was then in the dead of night, when I was lurking around the treehouse, unable to sleep, that behind a locked door, I overheard Finn and another party conversing, one who didn't normally occupy our living space. I could smell fire, but I knew Finn, him and his thing with Flame Princess, and figured it was just Flame Kingdom matters. Right I was. The scorching overlord of a blazing stronghold, the ringmaster of the inferno of Ooo, the kindling overlord who fears nothing, the king of the Flame Kingdom was in my house, and I knew something bad was to come. Flame King spoke to Finn, in a robust, yet casual, yet also cunning tone, "The Reapers are our enemy, and you seek the love of our princess. You must choose... your brother, or the woman you love most?" Finn hesitated to answer. Flame King continued, "I see. You are undecided. No matter. The Reapers have a bloodthirsty, rampaging beast within their deepest quarters, and it will wreak havoc in ten years." Finn questioned this, saying, "Wait, why do they need a beast anyway?" Flame King replied, "That's not important. What's important is that you go down to their resting grounds, and you free the beast from its chains, and bring him to us. You have the Reaper's Mark upon you, for you are the brother of Archimedes, and the Beast trusts your blood as his master." Finn, after some hesitation about the issue, replied, "I don't know. I don't want to betray my brother like that, none of this seems right." The Flame King then thought over the issue. He continued, "You do it, and you will win the hand of my daughter. You will be trusted in our kingdom, and you will live a long and prosperous life as the Flame Prince. Do we have a deal?" I then heard Finn scream in pain, as if he was being burned. "Shake my hand, human boy... you know you want her..." It had seemed that they had shook hands, Flame King's hand burning Finn's flesh forcefully, and the deal had been made. I was appalled, I felt ill, almost. If I could have, I would have busted through the door and taken on the man myself, but alas, I did not. I was not sure who to feel more disdainful towards; Finn for stooping to an evil man's level, or myself for not preventing such a thing. I heard Finn coming back toward the door and thus hid, avoiding him for fear of conflict. I wasn't going to let things get out of hand so soon.

Morning then came, and it was none more than a typical morning, and Finn, Jake, and I were feasting on leftover bacon pizza. What is it about bacon that makes it such a great food? Is it the taste? The name? The versatility? Whatever it is, I hope they never stop making bacon, as long as there are pigs to make bacon from. I'm getting off topic here, I apologize. I wasn't sure how to talk to Finn after the night before, and I didn't want to ruin his morning. I looked upon him, eating his breakfast with none much on his mind, and I sighed. I then said to him, under my breath so as to avert my attention from Jake, "I-" It was then Jake noisily announced, "Hey Finn, you've got mail!" and handed Finn the envelope with addressed to the boy. Finn replied, "Who's it from?" Jake then continued, "I don't know, but it's got Flame Shield all over it. No return address, though. Eh, it's your mail, so do what you want with it, I guess." It was then I noticed the burn marks were still on Finn's right hand. I thought of asking him how his hand got like that, but I again tried to avoid conflict. Finn set his mail aside and continued eating, allowing me to go into my study and channel the Reapers.

I focused the energy within my mind, and allowed the power to reach its fullest extent, and there and then I called out, "My people, we are in danger." There was no response. Rather unamused, I decided to fiddle around with my Reaper power. From the back of my hand, I formed a blade, much like one of the scimitar daggers I wield. I held my hand in front of my face, rotating my hand and looking from different angles. Right when I least expected it, a stream of Reaper energy materialized from the astral blade and formed the figure of Gilgamesh. I gasped, surprised at his presence. I then said to him, "Gilgamesh? What are you doing in my hand? I thought you sent yourself to the Reaper Realm." He lowered the hood of his cloak and stroked his forehead with his thumb and two fingers, silently staring me straight in the eye. He smiled and scoffed. "Master, I think you would fancy yourself an explanation." Somewhat impatient, I replied, "No, I want you to tell a joke." Gilgamesh chuckled happily. He continued, "Listen, Rufus, to the warning I give. Please remember..." his spiritual signal began to fade, and in a flicker of static, he disappeared. A booming voice shouted, "That's enough!" Within my head, they continued.

"The Reaper Order is danger! You must stop your brother at once! No ifs, ands, or buts!" I then crashed on the floor and said to myself, "This is gonna be one heck of a ride."

Enter... the beast. 


End file.
